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What causes ‘brain freeze’?

It all starts with an innocent spoonful of ice cream. Then another. Then another. But before you know it, your ice cream sundae — or perhaps morning smoothie — has stopped you cold in your tracks with an old fashioned case of sphenopalatine ganglion neuralgia — better known as brain freeze. It’s so common, you could ask if it’s really even summer without experiencing this sensation. It’s not harmful and it doesn’t last long, but when it hits, those few seconds can be crippling. So what causes it?  After many personal experiments diving face first into that mint chocolate chip cone, you already know that cold treats leave you with a quick and intense headache. But what causes our bodies to react that way? Is it really cold temperatures “freezing” your brain? “On the roof of your mouth you have this thick bed of capillaries, so when you have something cold, it causes…

Scoop up these freebies on National Ice Cream Day, July 15

I scream, you scream we all scream for ice cream — especially if it’s free. July 15 is National Ice Cream Day and ice cream lovers across the nation can celebrate with free or discounted dessert deals. Here are a few you can check out. Baskin-Robbins: Download the Baskin-Robbins mobile app for exclusive offers like a BOGO free cone offer and $2 off a medium milkshake. https://twitter.com/BaskinRobbins/status/1017800823898685441 Buster’s Real Ice Cream: Loyalty reward club members can get a $3 reward to use toward ice cream purchase. Carvel: This Sunday, buy a soft-serve cone or cup of any flavor and get a second cone or cup for free. Cold Stone Creamery: Sign up at coldstonecreamery.com for a buy-one-get-one free coupon. Dairy Queen: Download the Dairy Queen app and register and you’ll receive a few small Blizzard. Not valid in Texas. Dippin’ Dots: Get a free mini-cup during a specially designated two-hour window…

This man invented the ice cream scoop and made summer a whole lot sweeter

Alfred L. Cralle died in a car accident nearly 100 years ago, but his invention continues to provide an essential part of your summer experience. July 15 is National Ice Cream Day, and while you’re feverishly shoveling spoonfuls of your favorite flavor into your mouth, it’s Cralle you can thank for those picture perfect scoops. While working as a porter in Markell Brothers drugstore and St. Charles Hotel in Pittsburgh, Pa, Cralle noticed that ice cream stuck to the spoons and ladles the servers used, and they usually had to use two hands to separate them. Cralle responded to this ice cream crisis by creating the ice cream scoop — originally called the Ice Cream Mold and Disher. It was designed to be strong, inexpensive and easy to operate with one hand. It had no moving parts that could break or malfunction. On February 2, 1897, thirty-year-old Cralle applied for and received the patent…

Star spangled ice cream sandwiches

Ice cream sandwiches already scream summer, but with a little makeover, they can be the coolest Fourth of July treat at the table. Okay, this “recipe” is basically cheating. But if you want to add a little fun to your Fourth of July without any effort — literally, like zero effort — then you’ll love this simple trick. Buy a pack of ice cream sandwiches from the grocery store — or ice cream truck! I went for the mini sandwiches since there are always so many delicious treats at picnics. Smaller sizes mean you can sample more sweets. They also mean less mess, since they won’t have as much time to melt.  Pour some sprinkles in a bowl, and get rolling. Just like an ice cream cone with sprinkles, the extra taste and texture is delicious — and way more fun! Happy Fourth of July! Star spangled ice cream sandwiches Ingredients 1 dozen ice cream…

Here’s the scoop on the differences between your favorite frozen treats

Your love of ice cream might turn a little frigid if you knew the cold, hard truth. That carton you just purchased might not meet official ice cream criteria. Go ahead and take a peek at the pint inside your freezer. If it has the words “frozen dairy dessert” you’ve possibly been fooled. The reason that some packages have this alternative labeling is because the FDA regulates what products qualify as “ice cream.” In order to earn the name “ice cream,” a product must meet two criteria. First, it must contain at least 10 percent dairy milkfat. Second, it must weigh no less than 4.5 lbs. per gallon and have no more than 100 percent overrun. So, what exactly is overrun? Well, overrun refers to the amount of air pumped into the ice cream as it’s being made. The standard of about 50 percent overrun means that ice cream is made with one part…

U.S. Postal Service unveils first-ever scratch-and-sniff stamps

Sending a letter just got a whole lot sweeter. Now, when you send a note home to Mom, she can get a whiff of happy summer scents with the U.S. Postal Service’s first-ever scratch-and-sniff stamp sheets. The new “Frozen Treats Forever” collection features fun and colorful popsicles with sweet summer smells including kiwi, blue better, strawberry and watermelon alongside other ice cream truck favorites like chocolate, root beer and cola ice cream. The Postal Service says these stamps will “add the sweet scent of summer to letters of love, friendship, party invitations, and other mailings.” The collection was designed by Virginia-based artists Antonio Alcalá and Leslie Badani, and watercolored by California artist Margaret Berg. Each adorable scented-sticker features two frosty treats and will always be worth the current price of a 1-ounce first-class letter, like all stamps labeled “Forever.” A book of 20 stamps can be purchased for $10 at USPS.com and will become…

Why you might need to find a new favorite ice cream flavor

Vanilla ice cream is the Old Faithful of the frozen treat world. Not only is it America’s favorite flavor, but it’s an essential part of floats, splits, Blizzards, and apple pie a la mode. So why then, is this beloved summer scoop starting to disappear from shop menus? Reuters reported, a March 2018 cyclone in Madagascar, the country that harvests 80 percent of the world’s vanilla, has damaged plantations. About 30 percent of the crop was estimated to be lost, but the true extent of the damage won’t be known until harvest time in July. A shortage of the popular spice led to a crippling prices last year, and with the new crop damage, those prices are estimated to continue this summer. Costs of vanilla pods have risen by up to 500 percent. The valuable commodity sold for around $20 a kg (about 2 pounds) in 2010, but now goes for around $500 a kg…

6 pickle-flavored foods you wouldn’t expect

You may have heard the old cliche about a pregnant woman craving pickles and ice cream. Well, if they want soft serve, it’s now a reality. The Lucky Pickle Dumpling restaurant in New York City is offering pickle soft serve. According to Time Out New York, the ice cream is infused with cucumber juice to get the sweet-and-salty tasty right. Pickle soft serve ice cream is kind of a big dill! ??? #abigdill #kindaofabigdill #sopunny #foodpuns #pickle #picklelover #picklesforthewin #pickleicecream #picklesoftserve #softserveicecream #trendingnow #nyceats #foodgram #foodnetworkfaves #eaaaaats #feedfeed #eatandtell #luckypickledumplingco #oneluckypickle #foodnetworkfaves #fridayvibes A post shared by Vivian Chan (@missvivianwc) on May 11, 2018 at 12:32pm PDT The pickle has seen a renaissance of late, with Sonic rolling out a pickle juice slushie this summer and festivals like the annual Picklesburgh in Pittsburgh. Here are five other interesting combinations with pickle: Pickle pops are taking over the country. Forbes was…

Get ready for Häagen-Dazs Free Cone Day, May 8

In case you missed out on Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day and Dairy Queen’s free cone, the universe is giving you another chance for a free frozen treat. Häagen-Dazs is offering its own Free Cone Day soon. On Tuesday, May 8, from 4 to 8 p.m., walk into any Häagen-Dazs scoop shop and received one free scoop of ice cream or sorbet. Choose from flavors like White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle or Espresso Chocolate Cookie Crumble, or keep it light with fruit sorbet flavors like Mango or Lemon. Get it to-go in a cup, cake cone or sugar cone. https://twitter.com/HaagenDazs_US/status/989528704941359104 For the past decade, Häagen-Dazs has used its Free Cone Day as a way to raise awareness for honey bees. The population has been disappearing at an alarming rate, and without them, the food system would be altered drastically. For Häagen-Dasz, that means flavors like Strawberry, Rocky Road and Mango…

Get endless free ice cream at Ben & Jerry’s on April 10 during Free Cone Day

Clear your calendar and prepare your stomach. The 10th of April is less than a week away. So what happens on this wondrous Tuesday? Why, it’s Ben & Jerry’s Free Cone Day, of course. If you’re not familiar with how the annual ice cream holiday works, you’re in for a real treat — or as many treats as you would like, to be exact. That’s because unlike other freebie giveaways, Ben & Jerry’s let you try out any flavor for free in a cone or a cup, then get right back in line and get another free cone or cup. If you want to make the most of this lactose-loving opportunity, grab a friend and make a day of it, and you can try each of Ben & Jerry’s 35 flavors for free from 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. — as long as you get in line of course, and no cuts! Ben…